Chinese GP: Bridgestone race notes

Bridgestone-shod Michael Schumacher claimed an emphatic Chinese Grand Prix victory this afternoon in front of a roaring
crowd of fans to put him in the drivers' championship lead for the first time this season. Although Fernando Alonso took
second...

Bridgestone-shod Michael Schumacher claimed an emphatic Chinese Grand Prix victory this afternoon in front of a roaring
crowd of fans to put him in the drivers' championship lead for the first time this season. Although Fernando Alonso took
second place and is equal on points, the Scuderia Ferrari driver has one win more than his rival, just giving im the edge.

Schumacher's win was the 103rd victory taken by a Bridgestone driver. Felipe Massa unfortunately retired from the race after
44 laps, and Ferrari has subsequently dropped back to lie one point behind Renault in the constructors' championship. Fellow
Bridgestone runner, Mark Webber, took a well earned point for the WilliamsF1 team after running a strong and steady race to
finish eighth. Crucially for Bridgestone today, after the disappointment of Saturday qualifying, the 56-lap race provided the
ideal conditions for its wet and dry weather tyres. Drivers had to contend with a wet but slowly drying track after heavy morning
rain and the timing of tyre changes proved the deciding factor for most teams today. The Formula One paddock now hastily
packs up and heads over to Suzuka in Japan for next weekend's penultimate race of the season.

Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager of Bridgestone Motorsport:

"What a race! Congratulations to Michael on his 91st
win and to Mark Webber on taking a point in very difficult conditions. Admittedly, we felt a little deflated yesterday after
qualifying but today's result was a real boost. Our wet tyre was performing in ideal conditions this afternoon, unlike yesterday,
and it was great to see. We had the right wet tyre for the conditions and the key was that it was then able to connect to the dry
tyre's performance range as the track dried up. It was also good to see Sakon Yamamoto go the full race distance, which is
always good for experience and confidence. It was just a shame Toyota and Spyker MF1 could not capitalize more on the
Bridgestone tyres. It was a tough race in ever changing conditions but at least for some of our teams our tyres and hard work
paid off. However, we will not have much time to reflect on this result as next week is our home race. Our teams have just two
race weekends to claim as many points as possible and for Ferrari, who are in a possible to take the championship titles, it will
be more like a two race shoot out so we need to make sure we provide the best tyres for the Bridgestone teams."

"We knew there would be opportunities in the race, particularly when the
rain stopped when it did. We expected the Bridgestones to be very good if the track dried and that's what happened. Michael
did a great job in the fully wet conditions and as the track dried it all started to come towards us and we had to use every
opportunity we got. That's what the tyre war is all about."